Mobile Press school columns for Dec. 4

To have your school included in our weekly school section, please send a 300-500 word column to mobilenews@al.com no later than 5 p.m. Tuesday.

McGill-Toolen Catholic School

The McGill Student Government Association and the League of Women Voters will host a debate Dec. 4 between Bradley Byrne and Burton Leflore from 7-8 p.m. in the gym. Ben Waddell and Austin McGrew-Haynes will serve as moderators.

Twenty-seven members of the junior class joined Bill McAtee and Coach Bill Griffin in bringing back the annual Williamsburg trip over Thanksgiving break. This fantastic trip is a long tradition at McGill-Toolen spanning over a quarter century. The tour included Williamsburg, Jamestown and many interesting points along the way.

The McGill-Toolen Choral Company proudly presents the seventh annual Boars Head Festival on Dec. 8,9, and 10 at 6 p.m. This evening of medieval Christmas music, food and fun begins at 6 p.m. each night and is directed by Beth Haley, McGill-Toolen's Choral Director. The event features the McGill-Toolen Chorus and Chamber Singers. Tickets are available for $20 at the reception desk.

The McGill-Toolen Golf team will hold a golf tournament Dec. 20 at Timber Creek Golf Course to include a 4-scramble format. The cost is $100 per player and $400 per team with check in at 11 a.m. and shotgun start at 12:30 p.m. The event includes lunch, awards and prizes and range balls. Hole sponsorships are available for $100 each. Contact DD Thompson at thompsd@mcgill-toolen.org for more information.

Congratulations to our McGill-Toolen Football Team for a great season and making it to the semi-finals. The following players made the Alabama/Mississippi All Star Team: Wil Young and Ito Smith. Also congratulations to Coach Bart Sessions who has been selected to participate on the Alabama/Mississippi All Star Game on Dec. 14.

McGill-Toolen students are conducting a Student Community and Charity Advent Challenge. Students are challenged to attend 7:25 a.m. Mass each morning at St. Mary Church and collect donations to help replace roofs damaged in the Philippines during the Typhoon. The winning class will be presented with the Community and Charity Spirit Stick at the Dec. 12 Student Mass.

The St. Dominic Catholic School 3-A students celebrated reconciliation this past week. Every homeroom, grades two through eight, have at least two opportunities to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation throughout the school year.

St. Dominic celebrated a family mass Dec. 8 at 9 a.m. Students in grade four, with their families, participated by serving as readers, gift bearers, ushers and parents served as Eucharistic ministers.

The second grade class celebrated the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time on Thursday.

The Preschool students had a “polar express.” They were able to wear pajamas to school and had special treats.

The middle school went on a field trip to the Alabama Shakespeare Festival to see “A Christmas Carol” in Montgomery.

The freshmen class went on a field trip to Dauphin Island as part of their estuary study in biology. The trip included a boat ride where fish were harvested, a walk through a forest and the beach, an examination of the fiddler crabs and snails living in the mud flats and going into the ocean to catch fish.

The boys and girls middle school basketball teams defeated Satsuma this week. The boys JV and girls’ basketball teams defeated Mobile Christian and the varsity boys lost a very close game in overtime. For the game, students and parents "Teamed Up” for the Child Advocacy Center. Admission to the games was waived for anyone who brought an item to donate. Admission fees collected will be donated as well. The gym was standing room only for most of the night.

Students in grades K3-K5 who have been participating in cheerleading performed at the half-time of the varsity girls basketball game.

St. Mary Catholic School

By Thomas Gaillard

The week before Thanksgiving break, fifth grade students at St. Mary Catholic School visited the “Be Your Best Self” drug bus sponsored by Mobile Infirmary. Students learned about the dangers of doing drugs and examined organs which showed the damage that could be done to the body of a drug user. Sixth grade students made cards for the faculty and staff to show their thankfulness for all that they do and delivered them. Monday following Thanksgiving, all students attended the Hampstead Players’ production of “Prince Caspian” taken from The Chronicles of Narnia series. Andrew Snetsinger, Gavin Pica and Emma Walker even got to act in the production by playing animal characters. We are all looking forward to our third annual Tree Lighting on Dec. 8 from 5:30-8 p.m. Please join us for Christmas songs and cheer.

St. Paul’s Episcopal School

Lee Bonner, a member of the Service Leadership class, organized a cooking project to prepare and serve lunch to Veterans at the VA Hospital. Under the direction of Elizabeth Gregory, Lee and her classmates Caroline Ward, Kellsey Daggett, Olivia Scarcliff, Taylor Bahos, Annemarie Balfanz, Brooke Benefiel, Taylor Graham, Lyla Brady, Virginia Cottrell, Matthew D’Alonzo, Katie Grant Harkness, Taylor Larsen, Hannah Riggin and Hyland Stockton prepared delicious butternut squash soup, bread pudding, fresh tomatoes with pesto and sliced French bread to serve. Much of the produce used came from the St. Paul’s Community Garden. Mrs. Lerner, Mrs. McGee, and Mrs. Gregory would like to especially thank our VA liaison Dr. Jack Carney, a St. Paul’s parent.

The entire eighth grade of St. Paul’s Episcopal School participated in VOA Buddy Day at the Hillsdale Community Center. Each St. Paul’s student was partnered with a mentally and/or physically challenged adult for the day of fun arts and crafts. Consumers made fruit bags, Thanksgiving cards, friendship bracelets and thankful wreaths and also got to decorate a photo frame. Students and consumers then enjoyed a dance party with DJ Dr. Feelgood while they munched popcorn and cotton candy. St. Paul’s faculty chaperones Scott McDonald, Dan Drum, Brady Thrower, Murphy Elliott, Catherine Inge, Mike Fricke, Chad Harrelson, Kevin Weatherill, Laura McGee and Leslie Lerner set up, presided over and cleaned up the stations at this fun event.

Whitney Myers, a senior at St. Paul’s Episcopal School, was chosen to represent District VII of the Alabama Vocal Association’s Outstanding Choral Student Award. This is derived from a solo piece, an extensive resume’ and an interview. Whitney will now go on to compete for the state winner in April at the All-State Choral Festival in Birmingham.

Katie Byrd, William Hicks and Whitney Myers, all of St. Paul’s Episcopal School, were selected to the Alabama Music Educator Association’s Honor Choir. They will rehearse and perform in Montgomery in January.

St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School

By Misty Johnson

St. Vincent de Paul’s division two soccer team tied St. Pius 2-2. Goals were scored by Ayden Crane and Collens Merritt. Our division four soccer team scored its first goal by Coen Ta.

Congratulations to our CYO Toy Bowl All-Star winners. Ayden Crane played for the division two soccer team and Hayden O’Dell played for the division four soccer team. Way to go, boys! St. Vincent had four couples on the Toy Bowl Court: Rachel Johnson and Seth Aultman; Blakely Bryars and Bryce Goleman; Victoria Fletcher and Ethan Punch and Maggie Coty and William Pittman.

For Al Saints Day, our fourth grade class dressed up like their favorite saints. Jacquelyn Lovell participated in a horse show at the Jon Archer Arena. Besides showing her own horse, Jacquelyn works with special needs students who ride horses too.

The students at St. Vincent have been collecting money for the Philippine typhoon relief. They also collected blankets, scarves, gloves and socks for Catholic Social Services to send to Indiana and Illinois for those families affected by the tornados. Happy holidays from St. Vincent de Paul!

UMS-Wright Preparatory School

Congratulations to Marcelle Ellis, seventh grade, for winning the school spelling bee on Dec. 3. The runner up is Catherine Lyons, seventh grade, and Grace Lyons, fourth grade, came in third. The following students represented their grades in the spelling bee: fourth grade: Barclay McGinley and Grace Lyons and Ellie Moore as an alternate; fifth grade: Gracie Platt and Jay Lawrence and Joshua Catlett as an alternate; sixth grade: Kadie Grace Cooper and Rachel Duthu and Sarah Elizabeth Freeman as an alternate; seventh grade: Catherine Lyons and Marcelle Ellis and Alex Baker as an alternate and eighth grade: Kaitlyn Read and Sarah Meehan and Adelaide Bell as an alternate.

The UMS-Wright Volleyball team completed its 2013 season with a return trip to the AHSAA Elite 8. Both varsity and JV players attended the end-of-season banquet at the Country Club of Mobile. Individual awards and honors include:

In keeping with the true spirit of the holidays, all grade levels will be involved in service projects during the month of December. K-4 students will be making ornaments and collecting items for children at Wilmer Hall; K-5 students will go to Westminster Village Assisted Living Facility to sing carols and bring toiletries to the residents; first grade students will collect toys for the children at Penelope House; second grade students will collect toys for families in need at the USA Children’s and Women’s Hospital; third grade students will earn money for the Salvation Army; fourth grade students, through the Government Street Baptist Church, will serve breakfast and bring in goody bags for the homeless; fifth grade will be involved with the Ransom café’s candy cane Christmas event which helps needy families in the Mobile area and grades 6-12 will be collecting clothes, shoes and books to benefit Goodwill Easter Seals.

Speaking of spirit, the holiday concert will be at 7 p.m. Dec. 12 in the auditorium. The choral groups and the band will be performing.